Our last glimpse of the Oregon coast before turning inland
along the Columbia River
Our last day with the Toyota Tundra truck
The Toyota and Dodge side by side
Our first day with the new Dodge
Oregon is loaded with little espresso kiosks on every street
corner.
Farmhouse deep in the countryside.
Cycling along part of the old Columbia River highway that
has been transformed into a bike path.
The Columbia River's mysterious opening to the Pacific was
tracked by Lewis & Clark.
The Vista House, a monument to the pioneers built
overlooking the Columbia River Gorge in the early 1900's.
The train and highway run along both sides of the Columbia
River. We were told there are 38 trains a day, 19 on each
side.
The Vista House.
Columbia River Gorge
The paddle boat Columbia River cruises up and down the
river from Cascade Locks
Latourell Falls in the Colubmia River
Gorge.
Our lucky day. We found a patch of
shamrocks along the side of the road.
The Columbia River seen from the historic highway that has
been revived as a wonderful paved bike path.
Full Sail Brewing in Mt. Hood, Oregon.
Mt. Hood. The lush valley was filled with orchards of ripe fruit.
Driving towards Mt. Hood, Oregon
Timberline Lodge on Mt. Hood. It is a charming stone lodge
built with hand tools.
Inside there are many funky nooks and crannies and funny
"hobbit" doors and beautiful wrought iron.
Marionberry pie, one of the great delights of Oregon.
Northern Oregon
July 7-19, 2007 - We turned the corner on the Oregon Coast at
Astoria and said our goodbyes to the wilds of the ocean. We
arrived in Scappoose, Oregon, a small town northwest of Portland,
and settled into the city park for a few days. While exploring the
town of St. Helens we found a truck that we knew would pull the
buggy well, a Dodge Ram 3500 single rear wheel diesel. We spent
some extra time in the area upgrading to the new truck.
One of the many charms of Oregon is its love affair with good
coffee. There are little espresso huts everywhere.
It's also a very
lush area, and
we explored
some of the
back roads.
The Columbia River was the "great northwest river" that Lewis
and Clark explored in 1805, opening the west to expansion and
the arrival of the pioneers. They traveled the river by barge,
taking the wheels off their covered wagons and placing them on
barges. Later roads and railroads were built along the river's
edge. Today the historic Columbia River Highway has been
rebuilt as a beautiful bike path along the river.
A paddle boat "Columbia River" out of Cascade Locks provides
river cruises. The highway and train tracks run right alongside
the river. While we stayed in the city park in Cascade Locks we
were constantly awakened by the trains. They passed within 100
feet of our rig, and sometimes they would arrive in the wee hours
and sit still, trembling slightly, long waves of thunderous noise
rippling up and down their many-car length.
There are many waterfalls
along the Columbia River
Historic Highway.
The Mt. Hood Scenic Byway is a glorious drive through the lush
orchard-filled valleys around Mt. Hood. At one corner of the
drive is the funky-trendy town of Mt. Hood, home of the Full Sail
Brewery and a windsurfing mecca. We happened to be wearing
our Full Sail cycling jerseys that day and stopped in at the
brewery pub for a pint.
High up on the mountain we discovered the Timberline Lodge. It
is a lovely old stone ski lodge. When we arrived there were
crowds of young kids carrying snowboards heading up the chair
lifts for a day of summertime snowboard racing.
One of our favorite discoveries in Oregon was marionberry pie.
Marionberries are a cross between blackberries and raspberries
developed at the University of Oregon. The pie is to die for. The
best one we found was at a bakery in LaGrande, Oregon.
We wandered over the river into southern Washington and along
the Washington coast as well, discovering the beauty and power of
both the towering mountains and the severe coastline.